Ellis Medicine program making heart screenings more routine

Women under the age of 65 are two times more likely to die of heart disease than their male counterparts, but often they don’t know it. While the disease is the primary killer of women of all racial and ethnic groups, about 65 percent of women who die from it don’t show any cardiac symptoms.

For those reasons, and to help women get conditioned to think of their hearts more regularly, the Ellis program provides women with the opportunity to get their hearts screened in the same convenient location as where they get their annual mammograms. That way, the heart screening can accompany the mammogram and it becomes more routine.

Ellis Medicine is hoping to change the limited awareness in the community through its Women and Heart Disease program. The program’s mission is to teach women about the risk factors, unusual symptoms, and what to do if they’re presenting.

Cardiologist Dr. Andalib Nawab is working to spread awareness and change these statistics as the program’s director. “Awareness is the most important thing,” Nawab said.

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A 2012 American Heart Association study showed that women between 25 and 45 years of age, childbearing age, did not realize that cardiovascular disease was such a major killer of women. Even though they are seeing doctors regularly “Nobody’s made us aware of it, because our doctors never talked about it,” Nawab said. At Ellis Medicine’s Bellevue Woman’s Center, that’s changing. Ellis Medicine is the first in the Capital Region to develop such a program specifically for women’s heart health.

The program started in 2013, and has since screened 250 women. The cost of a cardiac screening through the program is $25. The screening includes a blood draw, BMI and blood pressure tests, a follow up appointment and collaboration with primary care physicians.

For high risk patients, further procedures such as lab work and an EKG testing can be paid for through insurance.

Though awareness has doubled over the past decade, according to the American Heart Association, racial minorities are still undereducated on the subject. “A huge disparity exists between women of different racial ethnic groups,” Nawab said.

It’s important for all women to know their risk factors and in which subtle ways heart disease may be presenting itself in the female body, so it can be recognized in time. From there, it is crucial to know what to do.

Women screened in the program are categorized into three classifications: low risk, medium risk and high risk.

Women who are diabetic, smokers, post-menopausal, or have hypertension or positive family history are between low and intermediate risk levels of having a heart attack in about 10 years.

Extremely high risk women are individuals who have already had a cardiac event, stroke, abdominal aneurysms and those who have diabetes, chronic kidney disease or peripheral arterial disease. For these patients, lifestyle modification isn’t enough, Nawab said. Medication and other medical intervention are more appropriate at this stage.

Presentation is sometimes atypical in women, and are certainly different than a man’s body. Chest pain is most typical, but other symptoms are subtle, including profound persistent fatigue, severe shortness of breath on exertion, lightheadedness, and severe persistent indigestion. Pain may also present in the back and the jaw for women. More vague systems can be attributed to women’s smaller hearts and narrower arteries.

“Knowing how you are presenting with those atypical symptoms and then doing something about it is going to substantially improve your well-being,” Nawab said.

Women often blame these characteristics on being overworked and fatigued, when truly the issue is much more serious.

Postmenopausal women should worry most. If menopause symptoms last more than one year, it could be heart disease.

Younger women can also present, especially if they have major risk factors. Even depression and stress can lead women to develop heart disease.

“If you get screened early you have the knowledge of what you need to do,” Bardin said. The program often refers patients to cardiologists, nutritionists, and psychologists, if necessary.

To individually address the problem, “Lifestyle modifications are hugely important,” Nawab said. Watching calorie intake, incorporating physical activity, and eating healthy are among the most important, she said.

Nawab suggests that getting screened beginning at age 20, when plaque formation has already started. Young adults should be screened every 5 years. After age 40, women should start scheduling yearly screenings.

Longtime Bellevue patient Helen Senecal, 78, utilized the program after getting a notice in the mail about scheduling her regular mammogram. Included in the notice was a suggestion to also have a heart screening at the same time.

Senecal hadn’t had her heart checked in quite a while, “so I took them up on it,” she said.

Senecal had her blood taken prior to the appointment, and then met with Bardin on the same day as her mammogram. She was informed her risk level was low to moderate. Senecal now sees a cardiologist whom she checks in with on a regular basis.

Senecal paid for the service out of pocket, “but for what I got out of it, I’m glad I did,” she said.

Screenings are available at the Bellevue Woman’s Center in Niskayuna and Ellis Hospital and Ellis Health Center in Schenectady.